A Message from NIPOC’s President

Dear NIPOC family:

2020 has been an interesting year, to say the least. We started the year with a new Board of Directors, followed by our annual Economic Forecast session,  attended by some 280 people.

Subsequently, we held an art painting exhibition, US Census with our community leaders, a Parent Appreciation Night, and a gathering of Engineers & Architects. Unfortunately, since then, and due to the tragic COVID-19 pandemic that continues to plague globally every facet of “normal” life as we have known it, we have had to cancel all scheduled events, including most notably Norooz 1399 & 13-Bedar, with great disappointment and at considerable cost.

NIPOC is well-known for organizing successful networking events and gatherings. The challenge now is how best to continue those popular and beneficial activities when it is not possible to do so in public. The board of directors (BoD) has been consistently holding virtual meetings once a week using Zoom, as well as planning new programs and upcoming events to benefit our loyal members and supporters. As an example, we have been creating and posting podcast videos on social media. The topics revolve around the current needs of the business owners and individuals in dealing with the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. We are actively looking for new relevant topics and speakers to provide value to our members.

NIPOC’s Career Committee (whose principal mission is to provide career counseling, to improve resumes, and to help with job placement) has been less active recently. We want to remind our members of this available service, especially when the unemployment rate has risen so dramatically. I am happy to announce that two job seekers have recently secured employment despite these challenging times.

The BoD has been actively engaging with professionals to develop new features and benefits for our members. Some of the new developments include web-based communities that center around various industries, and a NIPOC Academy for the sole purpose of educating our members about business, life, and personal growth. We will enhance our business networking gatherings as means of creating commerce and developing many friendships. The only way that people will refer business to others is through the following three phases: Know, Like, and Trust. That is the environment that we intend to create. Stay tuned for further news on the development of all these great benefits that your NIPOC BoD has been working on.

At NIPOC, we provide a forum to connect with our community. We hope to have your continued support. We ask that you check out our social media, and “Like” and “Share” relevant contents. If you need to renew, upgrade, downgrade, or make any other changes, please contact us via [email protected], or call us at 949-273-6543. I will personally respond to you promptly.

Sincerely,

Babak Khatibloo.